Why you should be at the 2014 Dharamshala film festival

Dharamshala and McLeod Ganj in particular have long been associated with natural beauty and their Tibetan diaspora. But since 2012, filmmakers Ritu Sarin and Tenzing Sonam have been working to add cinema to that list as well, with the Dharamshala International Film Festival (DIFF).

Now in its third year, the 2014 DIFF will be held at McLeod Ganj from October 30 to November 2, 2014. The fest will not only showcase 24 local, national and international films and documentaries (notable entries include Liar's Dice, India's official entry to the 2015 Academy Awards; the critically-acclaimed CityLights; and Only Lovers Left Alive, an Anglo-German production starring Tilda Swinton and Tom Hiddleston), but will also include conversations, workshops and masterclasses with directors.

"There are no cinemas in Dharamshala. In McLeod Ganj, there are a few video parlours that show pirated movies… One of our main aims when starting DIFF was to introduce independent films to the local community by not only screening films on a large screen but also having filmmakers come and interact with audiences," Sarin and Sonam told The Hindu.

Apart from bringing great cinema to the region, the founders, through their organisation White Crane Arts & Media Trust, also aim to promote contemporary art, cinema and independent media in the Himalayan region, which lacks initiatives to help local artists and filmmakers in the area. To that end, the festival will conduct special outreach programmes at local schools and colleges, and promote the DIFF Film Fellows Programme, through which five young filmmakers from the Indian Himalayan regions will be selected to attend film screenings, masterclasses and workshops at the fest, and engage in one-on-one mentoring sessions with established filmmakers like Rajat Kapoor, Hansal Mehta and Chaitanya Tamhane.

The Dharamshala International Film Festival will be held from October 30 – November 2, 2014. Register here.